1. Field
This disclosure relates generally to charge pumps, and more specifically, to a charge pump for use with a synchronous load.
2. Related Art
Traditional charge pumps suffer from several drawbacks. For example, they are limited to a narrow range of output voltages and loads. This is because a charge pump is typically required to satisfy certain performance requirements. Traditional charge pumps when used to obtain a broader range of output voltages and loads fail to meet these performance requirements. One of the performance requirements relates to a ripple factor that the output of the voltage multiplier needs to satisfy. Traditional charge pumps stop the clock when the output voltage is greater than the regulation voltage and then depend on the load to depress the output voltage. This method of generating a regulated voltage suffers from excessive ripple.
Furthermore, the ability for a charge pump to provide sufficient charge to a load may depend on the respective frequencies of the charge pump and the load. In some cases, in order for a traditional charge pumps to provide sufficient charge to a load, the load is designed to demand charge from the pump at a frequency lower than that of the charge pump. However, this may result in slower charge transfer to the load.